The Pain of Love
by dark staranime
Summary: Sora had a surprise for Kairi, but he fell unconscious on the way back with his surprise, keeping her waiting. What does this lead to?
1. Confusion and Regret

Hi! This is my first fanfic, so please review and give me advice.

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts.

Chapter 1: Confusion and Regret

"I failed..."

That thought repeated endlessly through the mind of a fourteen-year-old with spiky brown hair, sitting on a dock watching the setting sun illuminate the sky. Blue eyes screwed up in anguish as he shook away tears at the thought of Kairi. Sora cradled his head in his hands and groaned. How could he have been so stupid? They were nothing more than friends and never would be. But, a whisper in his heart had led him to believe that maybe there **could**.

He shook his head. "I was so wrong..." he whispered.

Leaning back on the dock, he rested his head against the wood. The sun was creeping below the horizon, casting shadows. He would have to get home soon, or his mom would send searchers when it got dark.

Sora sighed and shrugged. So what if people came? He could hide anywhere on the island and people would never find him if he didn't want them to.

He closed his eyes in thought.

-flashback-

_They were walking on the beach. _"Kairi, wait here, I have a surprise for you!" _Sora said, and ran around the next bend, disappearing form Kairi's sight. His destination was the best known paopu tree on the island. "This is it," thought Sora as he ran. "She'll know where I'm going, and if she waits, I'll know she likes me." He tripped over a tree root, his head hit the ground, and everything went black._

_He jumped up and found the tree, scaling it quickly; he grabbed his prize and dropped to the ground. He sprinted back along the path and ran to Kairi, who was waiting. His heart leapt, than sank as he saw her expression. _"SORA!" _she yelled, furious._ "What the hell are you pulling here? I waited for TWO DAMN HOURS and you never returned!" _Sora was speechless._

"B-but I was only g-gone for ten m-minutes."

_Kairi was livid. _"You little- oh, I-I...**I** **don't believe you. **You were trying to pull a joke on me, I can tell. Oh, Sora, I didn't think you were like that!" _She burst into tears and slapped him hard across the face._ "Stay away from me! We're not friends!"

_Kairi ran off sobbing. Sora gingerly touched his face, and as tears welled up in his eyes he ran blindly towards the water._

-end flashback-


	2. Agony, Confusion, Horror

Hi again, I have the rest of the story set to go, so please review and I'll upload it. Okay? Okay.

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, but I did make up Marin and Kura.

Chapter 2: Agony, Confusion, Horror

Kairi sat on the steps to her house, crying into her hands.

"Kairi!"

Kairi looked up to see Selphie and her friends Kura and Marin running towards her, eyes shining with anticipation.

"Kairi! Did Sora-" Kura broke off abruptly. "Oh, no..."

"What's wrong, Kai?" Selphie asked worriedly. "What happened?"

"I'll tell you what," Kairi said, her eyes hard. "Sora tried to play an awful joke on me."

"What?" the other three exclaimed. "Sora? Are you positive?"

"What happened?" Marin pressed.

Kairi's eyes welled up with tears. "He asked me to go for a walk with him on the beach, the one near that giant paopu tree. Suddenly he tells me to wait and sprints out of sight. **Two hours later**, he comes back and when I ask him why he's been gone for so long, he acts like he's confused and says he has only been gone for ten minutes!" Kairi narrowed her eyes in anger. "I even went so far as to believe he was a trustworthy friend." A wistful look passed over Kairi's face. "I even thought that maybe he..." She trailed off and the wistful look was gone. "Never mind. It doesn't matter now, seeing as he's such a jerk. Kairi closed her eyes and nodded conclusively.

Selphie looked worried. "But...Kairi... Sora wasn't playing a joke on you, we know that for sure."

Kairi opened her eyes and narrowed them at Selphie. "How do you know?"

Selphie swallowed. "Because we three encouraged him to carry out his plan. He-"

"Wanted to ask you something." Marin finished.

Kairi was confused. "What?"

Kura sighed, than looked at Kairi. "Kai, what part of the beach were you on?"

Kairi looked impatient. "I told you already, by that giant paopu tr-" She didn't finish the sentence. Turning pale, she whispered "Dear God..."

-flashback-

"Hey! Selphie, Kura, Marin! Can you guys help me with something?"

"What's up, Sora?"

"Look, I have a... slight problem." _Sora confessed. He quickly told them his master plan._

"Do it." _Marin stated adamantly._

"There's no reason why you shouldn't, Kai obviously likes you." _Selphie added._

_Kura nodded, grinning._ "Brilliantly simple and perfect plan, Sora. Now, go do it!" _Standing and searching the beach for Kairi, she pointed her out. Marin and Selphie ignored a pale and sweating Sora, and steered him over to Kairi, leaving him to talk to her and do what he needed to._

-end flashback-

Kairi had gone from very pale to very red during the course of the story. "He must have fallen and blacked out, there are so many places to trip and he's just so clumsy..." She whispered. "Oh, Sora...what did I do?"

She stood up suddenly. In the near twilight, the others could see her eyes, bright with unshed tears. "I have to find him. Will you three help?"

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	3. Redemption

Thanks to all those who reviewed! mOOnlite-dUSk, fantasyrider-kh, and DREAMER1389, you all rock!

Here's the last chapter. I warn you all, the end is incredibly sappy and fluffy, so. Be warned. And read it anyway then give me tips on how to tone it down if necessary. And it's necessary. So...here goes!

Fun fact(s): Sora is a feminine Japanese name that means "Sky" and Riku is the Finnish nickname for "Richard". And I couldn't find the name Kairi, although I know "Kai" is Hawaiian for "Ocean". (It's my nickname because those are my initials. Cool.)

Disclaimer: Still don't own Kingdom Hearts. (Not for lack of trying :p)

Chapter 3: Redemption

Sora got up, preparing to go home. But something in his heart told him to wait. "Alright...I'll wait. But why?" He shouted to the sea, "Kairi! I'm sorry. I only...only..."

"Only what?"

Sora spun around.

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Kairi ran towards the beach. She could see an outline getting up off the dock. The outline had spiky hair. Nearing the dock, she could hear his voice. He was talking to the sea. "...Why? Kairi! I'm sorry!" Kairi stepped onto the dock. "I only... only..."

Kairi found her voice. "Only what?"

Sora jumped, and then spun around to face her. He was speechless for a moment, then his eyes narrowed and went icy. "Never you mind," he snapped. "It has nothing to do with _you_." Kairi found herself being glared at. "Leave me alone, we're not friends, **_remember_**?"

The words stung and Sora knew it: compassion and forgiveness mixed with the hard features, but dissolved quickly. Kairi deserved this.

Kairi took the verbal blows. She knew she deserved this and hung her head instead of snapping back with an insult. Sora was angry and had every right to be. She replied as calmly and evenly as she could, not letting her voice waver. "You said my name. You must have been talking about me. So it has everything to do with me." She stepped forward a few paces. "I was so angry today. I thought ...that...you were trying to-" She swallowed. "Trying to play a joke on me. I was wrong; I knew you would never do that. I guess I just... forgot." She finished lamely. Sora watched her cautiously, but the hard features were melting away. "And of course we're still friends. I was just so mad. And- oh, good God." Kairi breathed out the final words, horror-struck. A bluish-purple mark accented his left cheek. She reached out and traced it lightly with her fingers.

Sora flinched but let her trace her handiwork. "I slapped you. Sora...could you ever forgive me?" Her eyes glistened. "I am so sorry." She whispered. "So sorry." Tears dripped down her cheeks and suddenly, she was being held in a warm embrace. She rested her head on his shoulder and put her arms around his waist.

Sora turned his head toward her and she could see that he was crying too. Softly he said "I only wanted to let you know that... I love you, Kai." He blushed. I had to let you kn-" He was cut off as Kairi kissed him. His eyes widened, then closed as he returned the kiss.

Kairi gently pulled away, smiling, and looked him in the eyes as she said "Sora, I love you, too."

Sora smiled and pulled her close to him, resting his head on hers as they watched the last rays of the sunset together, before walking home, hand in hand.

-the end-


End file.
